The excited Argentina childern [Photo: sina.com]
Throngs of people gathered along the avenue. Horns and sirens honked all through the route to squeeze a lane for the media bus keep going. The torchbearers had to be very close to the rear of bus for walking down each 200 meters. That's how the Olympic flame managed its way through the journey on Friday in Buenos Aires.
"It's really a spree best ever in the city," said the first torchbearer Carlos Espinola, the sailing silver medallist in the 2000 Sydney Games.
The Olympic flame was greeted in great passion in the "Tango City", the only destination in Latin America and only Spanish speaking country, marking its seventh stop in 33-day global journey outside of mainland of China. It's also the first time ever for Buenos Aires to welcome the arrival of Olympic flame.
A grand opening ceremony in the Ecologic Reserve unveiled the pageant relay. Artistic Tango show by Inaki Urlezaga, composed by members of the National Symphony, started a day of cheering and applause. The military band from regiment 1 of the patricios infantry played the national athems of China and Argentina.
Thousands of onlookers held the mobile phones, digital cameras and digital videos, trying to preserve the trace of the Olympic flame. Cheering, screaming and applauding were permeating all around the city.
The absence of soccer legend Diego Maradona and Gabriel Batistuta shed little gloom on the relay as the enthusiasm of the city residents made up for everything. Spanish Primera Liga player Andres, D'Alessandro and former U.S. open tennis champion Gabriela Sabatini, 2004 Athens Olympic silver medallist in tennis women's double Paola Suarezs were leading the roster of torchbearers.
"To be the first to hold the torch is a great honor for me," said the substitute first-leg runner Espinola.
"It has been always a dream for Diego Maradona to be part of the Olympic Games, but he was not available for the first leg because of I guess a reason out of his control," added Espinola, who won the America Cup three times.